Why colorize (colourize) photos & film? - Page 2

**scoundrel** · May 9th, 2011, 12:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Greenman

From time to time the colourised version of "The Longest Day" is shown and to be honest it looks better and more gritty in black & white. I am not colourising old films is a good idea especially War films based on fact-they were pretty grim at the best of times but black & white brings home the horror and suffering a lot more than colour.

UK Channel Five has a really bad habit of screening a colourised version of the 1951 b/w film version of A Christmas Carol, the one starring Alastair Sim, every year during the Christmas holidays. Colourising the film didn't add value; there are advantages to a black & white film including lighting effects and the use of shadows which are diluted when a film is colourised; and after all, A Christmas Carol is a ghost story. The Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come is truly scary in the original b/w version; he brings the news of the logical outcome of Scrooge's failed and selfish life and he should be frightening. Colourisation actively works against this film.

**electile disfunction** · May 9th, 2011, 03:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by scoundrel

Colourisation actively works against this film.

(For example, in this film the flames in all the fireplaces were coloured orange--not many oranges with some blue, red & black for contrast and authenticity ... just orange. I can't see how this is possibly "more like real life" or "done with quality/respect/dignity to the original source".

)

(Oops, I lost my self control a little bit there. I'm going back to just trying to understand the debate again.

)

**electile disfunction** · May 9th, 2011, 03:55 PM

A very slight bit of confusion seems to pop up in this discussion, so I'll add some basic information so we can avoid any discomfort from the mixed signals of our own eyesight. I have added a couple experiments you can try for yourself, too.

Yes, most humans do see colours if and only if there is sufficient light. Otherwise we see entirely in black/white/grey.

Experimentation with animals and people who can not see colour suggest that contrasting textures--movement, fine visual communications, fur or scales vs. leaves, etc.--are much easier to notice and correctly identify in all intensities of light when seen only in b&w.

Things to try:

1) At night, turn off all the lights in your house and close your eyes for about 5 minutes. When you open your eyes again, the very little light from streetlights or the moon and stars, etc. should be enough to see at least the outlines of furniture, pets, etc. If the light is low enough only some highlights will appear to have colour (maybe the incorrect colour!) but everything you can see will be b&w.

2) Hook an old 8 or 16 bit video game console (Nintendo, Super Nintendo, Atari, Coleco, whatever) up to a b&w television, or adjust a colour television to display only b&w. After just a bit of play you will likely begin to notice the gradations of grey and texture that you had originally "saw" as colours. With a few exceptions where colour is absolutely necessary to a game, you will find most games as easy or easier to play in b&w as when you played in colour. (Sorry, I have no idea why this happens!

)

I hope this information helps us all so we are less distracted in the discussion!

e.d.

**Navvet** · May 14th, 2011, 02:08 AM

I am a HUGE fan of classic (old) movies, and TV shows, and I despise the practice of colorizing them. No matter how advanced the techniques are, it never looks completely natural. Also, call me old fashioned, but I much prefer seeing movies as they were originally created, whether that is in color, or in B & W., if only for the historical value.

WDD · February 12th, 2015, 02:15 PM

Most older pictures were done in black and white only because that was all that was available, but limited coloring after the fact was done even in the late 19th century. I have a picture of my great grandmother from 1870 where her cheeks were tinted to give the effect of a blush.

I agree that when color photography was introduced it was expensive and prohibitive for small budgets.

Still, coloring was sometimes arranged by the artists themselves. My father was a photographer; he would sometimes put a picture in a toner chemical to make it shades of brown rather than gray, and give the picture to a colorist who would finish the job.

Today color photography is the standard, and black and white in modern movies is used only as an artistic device to convey a mood or atmosphere. The 1939 MGM movie "The Wizard of Oz" did the opposite -- color was used in the Land of Oz sequences to convey the richness and aliveness of the experience while the scenes in Kansas were plain black and white which was accepted as "ordinary."

May 9th, 2011, 03:55 PM	#13
electile disfunction Vintage Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Somewhere flat, that's either hot, cold, or windy ... Canada? Posts: 1,966 Thanks: 42,100 Thanked 21,353 Times in 1,903 Posts	A bit of info and an experiment A very slight bit of confusion seems to pop up in this discussion, so I'll add some basic information so we can avoid any discomfort from the mixed signals of our own eyesight. I have added a couple experiments you can try for yourself, too. Yes, most humans do see colours if and only if there is sufficient light. Otherwise we see entirely in black/white/grey. Experimentation with animals and people who can not see colour suggest that contrasting textures--movement, fine visual communications, fur or scales vs. leaves, etc.--are much easier to notice and correctly identify in all intensities of light when seen only in b&w. Things to try: 1) At night, turn off all the lights in your house and close your eyes for about 5 minutes. When you open your eyes again, the very little light from streetlights or the moon and stars, etc. should be enough to see at least the outlines of furniture, pets, etc. If the light is low enough only some highlights will appear to have colour (maybe the incorrect colour!) but everything you can see will be b&w. 2) Hook an old 8 or 16 bit video game console (Nintendo, Super Nintendo, Atari, Coleco, whatever) up to a b&w television, or adjust a colour television to display only b&w. After just a bit of play you will likely begin to notice the gradations of grey and texture that you had originally "saw" as colours. With a few exceptions where colour is absolutely necessary to a game, you will find most games as easy or easier to play in b&w as when you played in colour. (Sorry, I have no idea why this happens! ) I hope this information helps us all so we are less distracted in the discussion! e.d.

May 14th, 2011, 02:08 AM	#14
Navvet An Old Salt Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 8,095 Thanks: 71,681 Thanked 279,575 Times in 8,087 Posts	I am a HUGE fan of classic (old) movies, and TV shows, and I despise the practice of colorizing them. No matter how advanced the techniques are, it never looks completely natural. Also, call me old fashioned, but I much prefer seeing movies as they were originally created, whether that is in color, or in B & W., if only for the historical value. Last edited by Navvet; May 14th, 2011 at 02:15 AM..

February 12th, 2015, 02:15 PM	#15
WDD Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2014 Posts: 100 Thanks: 92 Thanked 1,070 Times in 75 Posts	Most older pictures were done in black and white only because that was all that was available, but limited coloring after the fact was done even in the late 19th century. I have a picture of my great grandmother from 1870 where her cheeks were tinted to give the effect of a blush. I agree that when color photography was introduced it was expensive and prohibitive for small budgets. Still, coloring was sometimes arranged by the artists themselves. My father was a photographer; he would sometimes put a picture in a toner chemical to make it shades of brown rather than gray, and give the picture to a colorist who would finish the job. Today color photography is the standard, and black and white in modern movies is used only as an artistic device to convey a mood or atmosphere. The 1939 MGM movie "The Wizard of Oz" did the opposite -- color was used in the Land of Oz sequences to convey the richness and aliveness of the experience while the scenes in Kansas were plain black and white which was accepted as "ordinary."